Trash
Dir: Stephen Daldry
2014
***
The story is fantastic but the balance of seriousness and lightheartedness is often off kilter. It's a great adventure film for slightly older children and the overall message is great but I found some of the turn of events to be extremely frustrating and sometimes badly written. The story became rather contrived at times but for showing how brutal life really can be in the slums of Brazil was a bold move that I applaud the film makers for. There is a level of logic that is missing from the overall film, this could be passed off as the result of what could happen with uneducated children but I don't buy it, one minute the audience are asked to read between the lines and the next minute we're spoon fed. I wonder if there were too many cook in the production and maybe certain elements were lost in translation but overall it's a fine adventure film that young teens are sure to enjoy.

The Reader
Dir: Stephen Daldry
2008
*****
I knew nothing about Stephen Daldry's The Reader before watching and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised and rather taken aback by it. It's a very complex story when it comes to the emotional turmoil and uncomfortable human issues involved but it is told so simply that it is absolutely captivating. This is also credit to the actors who were deservedly praised on its release. The young David Kross was probably the most impressive performance in my mind. He was the glue of the film, his performance had to be more physical than Winslet and Fiennes's, two brilliant actors who know that sometimes less is more and one expression can say a thousand words and something they both do brilliantly in this film. Three films down, Stephen Daldry was fast becoming a director you can rely on.

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
Dir: Stephen Daldry
2011
**
I can see hints or should I say remnants of Jonathan Safran Foer in Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close but I'm not sure anyone can claim this is a pure visualisation of the story he wrote. Apart from the fact that it's main character is hugely annoying (not sure if it's Oskar or Thomas Horn that is annoying) and that it, excuse my cynicism, blatantly pulls at the heartstrings for Oscar glory - although that I can live with, its biggest flaw is its anticlimax. I'm sorry, but I want to know what's in the box - I know that it isn't what the film is about but break it down in to its simple form (and it is a simple film), the viewer has had their expectations built up, so you have to deliver. The book is a very clever idea that is entirely about the aftermath of 9/11 as far as New Yorkers are concerned. The film version is something a little less tasteful than that. There are certain things you can say in books that you can say in film and vice-versa, this film crossed that line. It's not offensive, it's just a little bit pathetic. Max von Sydow's performance makes up for this films failures but only ever-so slightly.